


Chickens Never Lie

by dimsum_3



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrien Agreste Is Sunshine, Adrien Agreste/Marinette Dupain-Cheng Fluff, F/M, Family Fluff, Fluff, Fluff without Plot, Oblivious Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Romantic Fluff, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-04
Updated: 2020-08-21
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:54:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,440
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24539578
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dimsum_3/pseuds/dimsum_3
Summary: Miraculous Ladybug AUNot much changes with Adrien. He is in a different homeroom class than our clan.Marinette is the daughter of two farmers who love baking, but their full-time job is working their farm. Marinette still loves fashion and designing clothes, but she only makes her own for special occasions.Marinette and Adrien don't know the other exists. Chat still has a crush on Ladybug, but Marinette only really ever sees Adrien as another model if even that. They see each other around school but the other kind of just blends into the background. Set after the second season; they are turning 16.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Kudos: 8





	1. Enter the Chickens

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone!! 
> 
> This is my first time doing something like this, so I really hope you like it! 
> 
> I don't officially know where I am going with the plot quite yet but hopefully, I will figure that out as I go :) 
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> \- dimsum

Two large eyes blinked up at her. Marinette chuckled as the newly born calf tilted its head. How such large eyes could fit on so tiny a body, she would never guess. Very slowly the calf wobbled over to its mother and enjoyed the first feeding of its life. Marinette patted Betsy as she gobbled down her grain and was rewarded with the flick of a tail for her troubles.

“You know," Marinette giggled, "you should be more grateful to me for bringing your child into the world at this ungodly hour.” Even though she would have to get up again in a few hours for her morning chores, Marinette wouldn’t have traded those first few moments with that calf for the world.

After returning to the small yellow farmhouse, Marinette climbed the stairs to her bedroom in the loft and flopped on the nearest soft piece of furniture, her bed.

“Marinette!” Marinette’s kwami, Tikki, squeaked at her. “Are you going to be ready for school tomorrow?” A groan came from the mound now under the blankets. “What if there is an akuma attack?” Another grunt that sounded somewhat like “I’ll manage.” “Okay,” continued her shrill voice. “Just don’t plan on doing any late night sewing until you get your rest.” The tiny kwami shook her fist at Marinette and received only another grunt.

oOo**

The Dupain-Cheng’s lead rooster was never late; five in the morning on the dot he would start crowing - give or take a few hours depending on the season. Marinette pulled herself out of bed after his second crow, grabbed a simple pair of jeans and a t-shirt, and began her morning.

Her mother and father were already out and about, eggs collected, breakfast ready. Marinette finished her breakfast quickly and started on her day’s work, she had planned to meet Alya at school early today and wanted to make sure she had everything done in time. Granted, she still had a few hours before Alya even woke up, Marinette wanted to be ceratin that she and Alya had a chance to talk in person before their first day back to high school.

The morning passed quickly, and after a final check on Betsy’s calf, Hugo, Marinette headed to school. The Dupain-Cheng Farm was about a thirty-minute bike ride from the high school Marinette attended, in that time, the rolling hills surrounding the Dupain-Cheng Farm fell away leaving room for the heart of Paris. As Marinette pulled into one of the bike racks and tied up her bike, she noticed a familiar redhead sitting on the steps of the school. Marinette grabbed her bag from the basket strapped to the back and jogged over.

“Hey, girl!” Alya called, pulling her drink from her mouth.

“Alya!”

“Long time no see!” Marinette giggled, Alya had just been over for a 3-night sleep over a couple nights ago. Marinette and Alya fell easily into conversation about the new year and how fast everything changes.

“Like, can you believe that only a couple years ago, Ladybug and Chat Noir showed up?”

“I know,” Marinette chuckled awkwardly, “it’s crazy.” Marinette thought back on the time she had spent with Chat Noir, all his crazy puns and ridiculous proclamations of his feelings. Marinette shook her head and smiled; her kitty really was something. And no, before you ask, she did not find him endearing enough to go on a date with him. Ever.

“Girl, I see that face.” Alya teased, causing Marinette to blush. “Who is it?”

“Wha-at.”

“C’mon! Don’t leave me hanging like that!”

Marinette knew she couldn’t tell Alya about Chat Noir. That would bring up questions about how she knew him. Alya knew Marinette well enough to know that she would never have a celebrity crush. She might think that someone was cute, but it would never render her fantasizing; she was too practical for that.

“No one!” Ayla’s face told Marinette she didn’t believe her. “Betsy had a new calf this morning. He has the biggest eyes; he is so adorable!”

Alya stared at Marinette from over the frames of her glasses, lazily sipping on her smoothie. “I’m not buying it, but I will let it slide.” Marinette sighed in relief. “But-” of course there was a but “you had better tell me soon!” Marinette chuckled and promised she would… eventually.

As the two girls sat on the stairs, they watched people flood into the doors of the school. They didn’t recognize most of them, the girls knew that those students had been at the same school for years, but it was such a large school that they couldn’t remember their names. One familiar red cap did stick out in the crowd. Alya spotted him seconds before Marinette was about to call out to him.

“Nino!” Nino Lahiffe glanced up from his phone and pulled an orange headphone away from his ear. His face split into a grin as he recognized his girlfriend waving at him. Alya bounded down the steps and pulled him into a hug. Marinette smiled.

“Come on, lovebirds! We will be late for our first class!”

Nino and Alya sauntered up the steps hand in hand and joined Marinette on her way to their homeroom.

“Good morning, children!” Miss Bustier welcomed with a warm smile. The trio was far from being children, but they didn’t mind being called that by Miss Bustier.

“Good morning, Miss Bustier.” They echoed.

In Miss Bustier’s homeroom, there were technically no assigned seats: where you sat at the beginning of the year was where you stayed, but you could choose where to begin. Alya and Marinette took their usual seats in the second row and continued their conversation. Nino, who hadn’t had a desk partner for the last few years, sat in front of them.

Sometime later, the bell for the start of school rang, and the remaining students filed into class. The day began as usual; as there were no new students, Miss Bustier jumped right into her lesson. If not for all the work she had done for her parents over the summer, Marinette could have believed that summer was just a dream and she had woken up for school the day after it ended as if nothing had changed at all. Some of the teachers stuck with Marinette’s philosophy and picked right up where they had left off, while others rambled on about how this was a new year and how that meant new expectations! All members of the class participated in a collective eyeroll at that.

When the bell for the end of the day finally rung, it woke some, while alerting others that they were finally free. The students filed out of the school and dispersed their separate ways.

Marinette jiggled her key into the lock on her bike and was just about to turn it when she noticed an unusually shaped shadow pass over the ground. She glanced up just in time to see a blond head and a pair of ears disappear over the top of the high school.

“Finally.” Marinette muttered to herself as she ran back into the school.

“Marinette!” Tikki scolded once they reached the bathroom. “Why are you happy there is an akuma?”

“Sorry, Tikki. You’re right. I shouldn’t be happy.” Tikki crossed her arms and nodded. “Today has just been so slow. I wanted something new to happen on the first day! I know,” Marinette replied to the look Tikki was throwing at her, “there have been akumas over the summer, but only three! And they were at the beginning! I am just excited to stretch my limbs and soar across Paris fighting evil, it's different than patrol!” Tikki smiled at Marinette’s giddiness and quickly forgave her. “Tikki, spots on!”

The stalls behind her were briefly bathed in pink light as Marinette transformed into Ladybug. She sprinted into the courtyard of the school, sprung onto the roof, and began looking for Chat.

Trailing around the Eiffel Tower was what appeared to be a large disco styled dance floor.

“I AM DISCONATRON!” Boomed the akuma. “YOU MADE FUN OF ME BECAUSE OF MY MOVES AND NOW YOU MUST ALL DANCE DISCO STYLE!!!!” The akuma ended his speech with a cackle. The akuma appeared to be a giant Elvis Presley with a disco ball instead of a right hand. He proceeded to shoot laser beams out of the disco ball at random places throughout the city. From those points, people blindly walked towards the dance floor, and once they reached it, they immediately began dancing.

Ladybug smiled; this was probably just some little old man who wanted attention. Ladybug swung through the roof tops and landed just behind a chimney near the Eiffel Tower. For some reason unknown to her, Ladybug miscalculated her position and dropped just a few inches short of the edge of the rooftop. A sleek, leather-clad hand grabbed her own and pulled her to safety.

“I see you’re finally falling for me, m’lady.” Chat winked as he placed a small kiss on the hand he held.

Ladybug laughed. “In your dreams, Chat Noir. So, what have you found out about the akuma?”

“Indeed, Bugaboo.” He winked and Ladybug rolled her eyes. “I was thinking that the akuma would be in his disco ball; it is where his power is coming from.” Ladybug nodded her agreement. “He seems fairly old; I don’t think he will be very concerned with us. He barely payed me any attention when I went up to him.” Now that he mentioned it, Ladybug noticed that he only faced one way even though the dance mat ran all around the Eiffel Tower.

“We have to be careful though,” she added, “Hawkmoth will be keeping an eye out for us and will tell him to turn around if he notices us.” Chat Noir nodded and they split up. Ladybug went around one side of the Eiffel Tower, mostly sticking to the streets and Chat Noir went around the other, the unspoken agreement to do the same. When they reached the Eiffel Tower, they hid in the shadows and snuck behind Disconatron. That’s when they discovered the reason why the akuma never turned around. There were at least forty tiny versions of itself lining the borders of the dance mat. Some were shooting laser beams like the big version, while others appeared to be standing guard along the borders of the mat.

As soon as they reached Disconatron, thirty of the little heads turned towards them and charged. Ladybug and Chat Noir fought them with all their strength, but every time one was hit in the slightest, it would split into two. Very soon, they were overpowered and losing quickly.

“What do we do, m’lady?” Chat Noir’s voice was ever the essence of calm, but Ladybug could hear he was quickly panicking.

“Pull back.” She responded.

They leaped to the roof of a nearby house and hid behind the chimney. Thankfully, as soon as they had left the borders of the dance mat, the – now hundreds of – mini Disconatrons refocused on the dancers.

“So that wasn’t what we expected.” Chat chuckled.

“Not at all.” Ladybug replied.

“What do we do now?”

“Well, we know that his akuma is in his disco ball, we just need to find a way to get it.”

“Maybe there is a reason he never turns around…?”

“You’re right…” Ladybug paused and inspected Disconatron and his minions more closely. Then she noticed that if Disconatron turned slightly one way while dancing, all the minions on that side would immediately start dancing as well. But the odd thing was, if he turned the other way, they didn’t start dancing until he was almost fully turned around. Ladybug reported her finding to Chat Noir and asked what he thought.

“Well, maybe we should consult the Lucky Charm.” He suggested.

“Alright, I'm out of ideas otherwise.” Ladybug extended her arm and threw her yoyo into the air. “Lucky Charm!” A swarm of small magical ladybugs appeared out of the yoyo, twirled in a circle and then joined together to create a spherical object, which fell in Ladybug’s hand. She was confused as she looked for what it could be used for. Then it dawned on her. Ladybug pulled the covering off of the disco ball she held in her hand and ran back towards the Eiffel Tower. “Be ready to break his disco ball!” She called back to Chat Noir.

Ladybug swung around the tower, and through the streets of Paris, until she reached the exact opposite side as Disconatron. She landed in one of the streets and jogged up to the middle of the Eiffel tower. She pulled the disco ball from under her arm and watched as all the mini Disconatrons immediately started dancing. Ladybug smiled as just at that moment, Chat’s baton came out of nowhere and broke the disco ball on Disconatron’s hand. The small purple butterfly flew out of it.

“Time to de-evilize!” Ladybug threw her yoyo at the akuma and purified it. “Bye bye, little butterfly.” She called as it flew away. “Miraculous Ladybug!” She shouted as the Lucky charm burst into a cloud of little ladybugs and flew over Paris, fixing everything in its wake. “Pound it.” She smiled. This is what she loved. Although, Chat’s cocky smirk did dampen the effect slightly.

Just then her earring began to beep. “That’s my cue. Chat, can you take care of this man?” Ladybug pointed to the man now sitting on the ground staring blankly up at them. Chat Noir nodded. “Thanks! Bug out!”

Ladybug swung back to the school bathrooms and detransformed. “Here, Tikki.” She said as she offered her exhausted kwami a cookie from her purse.

“So, are you back in a good mood?” Tikki smiled.

“Yes.” Marinette responded, laughing.

Marinette unlocked her bike from the bike rack and began pedaling home. When she pulled up their long driveway, she noticed a small black car with shaded windows sitting in the driveway. The chickens that usually wandered free, were all crowded in the shade of a nearby tree. That was never a good sign. Somehow, their chickens had an excellent judge of character.

Marinette tucked Tikki back into her purse and jogged up their front steps. She heard muffled voices from inside.

“-you really do have a nice property, Mr. Dupain.” Came an unrecognizable voice.

“Thank you.” Marinette’s father responded. He sounded slightly stiff.

“I was wondering if you were thinking of selling.” Marinette almost laughed, if there was one way to get on the wrong side of Tom Dupain, it was to offer to buy his farm.

“I think you should be going now, sir”

“Ah, I see.” Came the voice. “Well, it seems as though I have overstayed my welcome. I must be going now. Mrs. Cheng. Mr. Dupain.” He addressed each of her parents in turn and then walked through the kitchen door, passing Marinette on the way. “Good day, Marinette.” Marinette could only wave awkwardly.

As soon as the black car rolled out of the driveway and down the lane, the Dupain-Cheng farm released a collective sigh. The chickens returned to their exploration of the lawn, and Marinette went inside.

“What was that all about?” She asked.

“He was from the bank; they have been after the farm for years. Want to turn it into suburbs.” He spat out the last word like a curse. The Dupain-Cheng farm had been in her father’s family for years, and Mr. Dupain had fought hard against his brother for it. From what Marinette had heard, they had come every Thursday for the first five years asking, until Mr. Dupain finally sent them away with a threat. Now they just dropped by every now and then. Marinette hadn’t seen someone from the bank in years, but her parents assured her they had come, just during school hours.

Suddenly, rumble of a car engine came down the street, and loud crunching alerted the Dupain-Chengs that it had entered their driveway. Mr. Dupain growled and marched through the kitchen door again, muttering under his breath. “That better not be them again.”

Marinette and her mother quickly filed in behind him and watched over his shoulder as another sleek black car pulled up to the house. This time however, the chickens only moved as to not be hit. When the car parked, they returned to their regular activities. _That’s odd._ Marinette thought to herself.

After a few seconds of breathless anticipation, the backseat door opened and a what appeared to be a teenaged boy stepped out. He was tall, lanky, well dressed, and had a mop of well-groomed blond hair atop his head. His eyes were blindingly green, and they twinkled with kindness when he smiled.

“Hello.” He said with a smooth voice. “Is this the Dupain-Cheng Family Farm?” When he asked the question, he tilted his head slightly to the side - still smiling innocently - effectively pulling off the look of a lost puppy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I was excited to have Adrien drive everywhere in a little sports car and Marinette in a little forest green pickup truck, but alas! my dreams are dashed!! ;) Apparently, the legal age of driving a car in France is 18! But you can drive a motorcycle at 16, so …… *evil cackling begins*. I don’t know for sure though ;) (*author still rubbing hands together in the dark corner of their room*)
> 
> Please feel free to leave me any comments! If you like it (or don’t), I would like to know why! Please try to stick to positive criticism though. :)
> 
> See you next time!
> 
> \- dimsum
> 
> **I borrowed the idea of using oOo as a break in scenes from another writer. I forget who. Whoever you are, I love your idea and I really hope you don’t mind me using it. :)


	2. A Café with New Beginnings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again!!
> 
> I really hope you are enjoying my story so far. I will be trying to update as much as possible, but I am in the middle of finals right now, so I don’t know how that will work out.
> 
> Here we go!!
> 
> \- dimsum
> 
> (I have decided to add the last couple sentences to each chapter so you know where we ended, we will see how this plays out. I will only do this when the last chapter leaves you hanging.)

“Hello.” He said with a smooth voice. “Is this the Dupain-Cheng Family Farm?” When he asked the question, he tilted his head slightly to the side - still smiling innocently - effectively pulling off the look of a lost puppy.

“Hello, young man,” Mr. Dupain responded, relaxing after he realized this boy was not from the bank, “my name is Tom Dupain, this is my farm.” He said warmly, extending his hand. The boy shook it and smiled. “What can I do for you?”

“Nice to meet you, Mr. Dupain. My name is Adrien Agreste.” Marinette gasped at that, she knew she had recognized his face from somewhere, but she couldn’t place it until now, this was the son of the famous fashion designer and her idol, Gabriel Agreste! Adrien chuckled at her gasp; he obviously knew the source of it. “My father insists on only eating free range, farm fresh eggs, and our regular supplier just recently sold his farm to the retail agency so that they could turn it into town houses. I have heard that the best eggs come from this farm; I was wondering if I could buy some from you.” Mr. Dupain fully relaxed at that and was just about to respond when the timer went off in the house.

“Please excuse me,” he said, “my bread is ready.” He hurried back into the house, and Mrs. Cheng took his place.

“You can buy a dozen for anywhere from $8-$15. 8 for our regular eggs, 12 for heritage breed eggs, and 15 for blue or olive eggs.”

“I’ll get a dozen heritage eggs, please.”

“Great! I will get some!” Mrs. Cheng followed where her husband had gone.

Her parents often left her alone to entertain buyers while they readied their products, but this time, Marinette couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable. She glanced at her feet, and that’s when she noticed that the chickens, who were usually trailing around her feet for treats, were rubbing up against Adrien’s legs like affectionate cats.

“Ummm…” Adrien’s awkwardness brought her back to the present. “Is there something wrong?”

“Sorry?” Marinette blinked up at him in confusion.

“You are staring at my feet like they just grew talons. What’s wrong?”

“Oh.” Marinette laughed. “My chickens. They have never acted like this before. Usually they are hiding behind my legs or in their coop, but they seem to love you. It’s just odd.”

“Well I don’t think it’s odd.” He muttered to himself as he watched them with a new fascination. Marinette cocked an eyebrow. “I think its nice.” He almost whispered the last part.

They lapsed into an awkward silence as they waited for Mrs. Cheng to return. She finally came back with an egg carton - stamped with their name - full of eggs. Adrien handed her the appropriate cash, and she gave him the carton.

“Please come back anytime, Mr. Agreste.” Mr. Dupain called from the porch, wiping his hands on a flour covered dish towel. “We appreciate the business.”

“Thank you, Mr. Dupain.” Adrien replied. “And thank you for the eggs. Goodbye, Mr. Dupain, Mrs. Cheng, Miss-“ he paused, “I’m sorry, I just realize I never did get your name.” He smiled, cocking his head in another silent question.

“Marinette. My name is Marinette.” She smiled warmly back at him.

“Goodbye, Marinette.” He returned the kindness in her smile and walked back to the waiting vehicle.

The Dupain-Chengs watched the black car pull out of the driveway and drive back to the city. Marinette could have sworn she saw Adrien waving from the back seat.

oOo

It had been a week since her run in with Adrien Agreste, and Marinette still didn’t know what to think. He was far nicer than she had thought, and quieter too. She had told Alya about him as soon as she had reached her room that afternoon. Before she could even call though, Tikki was squealing like a teenaged girl, flying all around the room, only pausing to say things like, “He was so nice!” and “Did you see how handsome he was!” Marinette rolled her eyes through the whole thing but had to agree with Tikki, he was nothing like what she would have thought.

Adrien plagued her mind constantly, on rides to and from school, during another akuma attack, even in the middle of class. Marinette knew it wasn’t a crush, he was just so intriguing to her, that the son of her idol, the son of a self-proclaimed devil, could be so clam, kind, and considerate.

Not all of her time could be spent thinking about Adrien though, with the start of the new year, the homework started piling up. Mr. Dupain and Mrs. Cheng knew that their daughter would rather study in a coffee shop or a café than at home, and therefore allowed her to bike into town whenever she wished after she was done her chores, and as long as she let them know beforehand.

The days were starting to get colder and Marinette had to throw a barn jacket* on before left for town. She was planning on leaving her barn jacket on her bike because it wasn’t really something you could wear into a café, however, her plans changed when she arrived at the café, opened the door, and was hit by a wave of air far colder than that of outside. She quickly ran back to the bike rack and threw on her barn jacket again.

After Marinette had gotten her hot chocolate – with extra whipped cream of course – she found a table by the window and pulled out her laptop. She had shoved a sketchbook in her bag at the last moment in case she found any interesting people she could practice drawing figures on. Marinette pulled that out too. She then opened her computer, pulled out her headphones, and put some soft music on. Her hot chocolate was still too hot to drink, and the air too cold to take her jacket off, so she opened her sketch book and began sketching an old woman who sat in the corner of the coffee shop. She looked exactly like what you might expect an old lady to look like. She was holding her large red purse in her lap with one hand and sipping a small cup of coffee with the other. The woman was deep in thought, which Marinette was grateful for because it meant she wouldn’t move for a while and Marinette could make a basic sketch as well as a few fashion sketches.

Marinette was just finishing up the last portions of her first fashion sketch when she decided to start another one. Excited by a new idea that popped into her mind, Marinette immediately glanced back up at the woman to get her basic structure, when she found that the lady was gone. Granted, the old lady was probably still in the corner of the coffee shop, but Marinette could no longer see her. Her view was blocked by a tall man in a black trench coat. Marinette grabbed her hot chocolate and sipped it angrily while staring at him. If she could move someone with a glance, that man would have been all the way to Timbuktu by now. Marinette almost spit out her hot chocolate when the man turned around and grinned at her.

“Hello, Marinette.” He called cheerfully.

“Hi, Adrien.” Marinette replied, pulling out her earbuds.

“How have you been?” He seemed as though he was genuinely interested in how she was.

Marinette grinned at that. “I am well, thank you. And you?” She tried to echo his expression.

He half laughed and half sighed. “I am fine, just trying to escape.”

“Ah.” Marinette replied as if she had any idea what he was talking about. They lapsed into silence, and Adrien looking out of place just holding his coffee in the middle of the café. “Would you like to sit?” Marinette gestured to the seat across from her.

A grin split across Adrien’s face as if he would like nothing more in the world. He walked over and slipped into the seat she had gestured to.

He smiled again, but this one was more wistful.

“What is it?” She prodded.

He turned his attention back on her. “I know it’s crazy to feel this way because we just met, but I feel as though I have known you for years, and yet I don’t know the first thing about you. Like we have gone to the same school for at over two years now and have never spoken.”

“Wait, we go to the same school?” Marinette couldn’t believe it,

“Yup,” he grinned, “I haven’t noticed you before this week, but my best friend Nino, said you had been there for longer than I had. I saw you around the campus a few times and even tried waving, but you never seemed to notice me. Always lost in thought.”

Marinette blushed. She probably hadn’t noticed him because she was always thinking about him or trying hard not to. “Yeah.” She muttered. “So, you know Nino?” She figured that was a good place to start.

“Yeah, he was the first friend I made when I first started. Do you know him?”

“Yeah, actually. He is dating my best friend, Alya.”

“Oh wow, I remember meeting Alya, and maybe even her mentioning you. It’s a small world.”

“Yup.” Marinette wholeheartedly agreed. “So, you said you don’t know anything about me?”

“Yes, and I’d like to, if you’d allow me.”

Marinette’s inner extrovert jumped at the opportunity to make new friends. “Sure, what would you like to know?”

“Okay, but before we start this, I don’t want this to be just an interrogation. How about I ask a question, and then you ask one?” Marinette nodded. “Ok, first question. Why are you here?”

Marinette laughed. “What do you mean? Why am I in Paris? What is my purpose in coming to this café? Why was humanity created. What is our purpose in life.” Adrien laughed at that.

“Ha. Ha.” He said sarcastically. “Little Miss Psychology. Why did you come to the café? Were you following me?” He leaned forward with a mocked expression of seriousness on his face.

“Uhu. Yeah right, as if you’re worth _my_ time. It was most likely the other way around.” She responded with just as much mirth. He pretended to be a wounded puppy but failed miserably. “I come here regularly to work on homework. I haven’t been here since school ended, but now that it started again, I’m back.” She smiled at him and spread her arms to show that she, indeed, was back. “So, what about you Mr. Stalker. Why are you here?” A twinkle lit up his eye and she had to cut him off. “And before you respond, I am asking the same question you were, nothing to do with metaphysics or reality.” He smirked.

“I have actually been coming here almost every day for the last two months. It’s my only way to escape, like I said earlier. And before you ask,” he quickly added as she opened her mouth to do just that, “my life is too busy and too strict. This café is on the other side of town and it allows me to get away for an hour or two.”

Marinette understood; that was exactly why she came there almost every day as well.

“Ok, second question.” He declared. “I feel as though, as a model and the son of a world-renowned fashion designer, I have the right to ask this. What on earth are you wearing?”

Marinette paused in confusion for a moment, and then she laughed. He was talking about her barn jacket. “Ah this. This is a barn jacket. I threw it on, on my way out the door and it was cold in here, so I left it. I am actually getting quite warm now, though.” She pulled it off and draped it over the back of her chair.

“Ahh, your outfit is so nice, why did you hide it in the first place?”

Marinette laughed and rolled her eyes. “Didn’t I just explain this to you? And thank you, I made everything I am wearing right now. I don’t usually wear the stuff I make but I felt like today was special.”

Adrien smiled back. “I know exactly what you mean.” He said sofly.

Adrien and Marinette continued to ask each other questions until both their drinks were long gone and it was growing dark outside. Adrien noticed Marinette begin to glance outside every few minutes.

“Last question,” he said, “will you come back tomorrow?”

Marinette smiled. She would’ve loved to say there was no way she would miss it if he was going to be there; but “yes” was all she replied with. “Unfortunately, as you already picked up on, I really must be going. I enjoyed talking with you, but it’s getting dark and I rode my bike here.”

At that, Adrien looked aghast. “Let me give you a ride home.” He said immediately.

Marinette smirked. “With what?”

“My driver is coming to pick me up now and I can get him to drop you off at home.”

“No. I couldn’t.”

“Really, Marinette. I insist.”

Marinette thought about it. She was polite, but she wasn’t stupid. It would be reckless driving a bike on roads that weren’t lit by streetlamps. “Alright.”

“Perfect! He will be here in a few minutes.” As Marinette was no longer glancing worriedly outside, she and Adrien continued their conversation happily.

After a few minutes, as he had promised, a familiar sleek, black car pulled up in front of the café. “That’s our ride.” Adrien pointed out.

Once outside, Adrien walked Marinette up to the nearest door, and opened it for her. _Ever the gentleman._ Marinette thought to herself. His driver helped him strap her bike to the back before he joined her on the other side.

They spent the drive in silence, but it was a contented silence, neither felt as if they had to break it.

When they pulled into her driveway, Marinette was reluctant to leave the comfortable atmosphere they had created, but she knew she had to.

“Thank you for the ride,” she called once she had stepped out of the car and retrieved her bike. “I will see you tomorrow.” Marinette said to Adrien, and watched his smile grow. “Goodbye.” She waved one last time and rolled her bike into its usual place in the shed.

On the front porch, Marinette watched as the black car pulled out of her driveway and drove off into the night. She smiled, knowing in her heart that this was only one of many days that would be spent with Adrien Agreste.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, feel free to leave any comments. I love hearing from you!
> 
> \- dimsum
> 
> *A barn jacket is a big jacket that is thick and can keep you warm in the winter as well as in the fall (if you leave it unbuttoned). A barn jacket is called as such because you throw it on over your clothes when you don’t want them to get dirty. You can use it when piling firewood by the armload so that the wood chips don’t get all over you. They are normally big enough to be loose on the largest person in the family.
> 
> (I grew up with these, they look like this but older and with dirt and tears ( not as in crying but as in rips :) ) in them: https://bit.ly/3gURZJr or just search up Dickies flannel jacket)


	3. What if... ?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi Everyone!!
> 
> I hope you like your two updates in one day last time, but I can’t promise that will happen every time ;)
> 
> Thank you for reading this. It really means a lot to me.
> 
> What’s next…? Let’s find out!
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> \- dimsum

Marinette blew on her hot chocolate, waiting for it to cool off. A few days ago, was the first time she had seen Adrien at the Café. Since then, they both had come every day, the same time, to meet. Marinette wanted to come as soon as school got out, but she knew that she needed to finish her chores first and Adrien understood, so they met there every day an hour and a half after school was over. Adrien said that he also had lessons to go to after school - something about fencing - which made Marinette feel better. She hated making people wait for her.

Today, however, Adrien was late. He was only half an hour late, but Marinette couldn’t help but wonder if he was alright. Her hot chocolate was almost cold enough to sip, and she cautiously tried some. She felt the warmth seep into her body, she closed her eyes and sighed.

“Enjoying your drink, Little Miss Phycology?” Marinette glared up at the speaker, a grin plastered over his face. He had begun calling her that. More and more she had let him see the poetic side of her and she immediately had regretted it, it was bait for his incessant teasing.

“You’re late.” She said still frowning. He was such a tease, but she soon forgave him.

“Yeah, I’m sorry, practice ran late today.” He rubbed the back of his neck staring at the chair in front of her.

“Oh, that’s alright, sit!” She gestured to said chair, and he obliged, looking relieved.

Over the last few days, Adrien and Marinette had fallen into a routine, they would meet at the same table, order their drinks, and spend the first hour asking questions and just talking about themselves and their day. After that, they both got to work, and sat across each other silently working on their homework. As they were in different homerooms, they couldn’t technically help each other on the work, but they tried to make the other’s understanding of the major concepts more thorough. Every now and then, they would agree to take a break and spend a few minutes laughing, talking, and having a well-rounded amount of fun. At the end of the day, Adrien never failed to offer her a ride home.

Marinette smiled at how close they had gotten. Alya was still her best friend, but Marinette had gotten closer with Adrien than she could ever hope to be with anyone else in under a year of being together, even Nino.

She glanced back at Adrien and was surprised to find him lost in thought. He was usually watching the people around him if they ever stopped talking and weren’t working. He said that he was always around the same people every day and that it was nice to see new ones and he wondered what it would be like to live in their shoes for a day. At the moment, Adrien was staring into his cup mournfully.

“Hey,” Marinette said softly, “what’s wrong?”

Adrien seemed slightly surprised by the question, but the surprise was soon replaced by the melancholy face he was wearing before. “Would you say we’re-” he paused, looking for the right word, “-friends?” He looked up at her, eyes searching Marinette’s face for some kind of answer. He looked terrified as if his life depended on hearing her answer and yet it could be the death of him at the same time.

“Of course.” She reassured him, “wouldn’t you?” Adrien nodded eagerly, a smile spreading over his whole face. Marinette couldn’t help but giggle at his eagerness. “Alya is still my best friend, but I would say that you’re my close second.”

Adrien grinned even wider, almost reaching his ears, “I feel the same.”

After that, Adrien opened up completely, not hiding anything from her, and Marinette did the same. They both told each other anything and everything about themselves, and soon their schoolwork was forgotten. Like the first day, the sky darkened faster than either of them could tell and it was soon time to return home. On the ride back to Marinette’s house, they talked about school and the new year. Adrien kept hinting that he had something to tell her, so she finally asked.

“What’s your secret that you’re dying to share.” She teased.

“I have a surprise!” Marinette’s eyes lit up with curiosity, but he continued. “I can’t tell you yet because I am not certain that it’s actually happening but I’m working on it.”

“Uggggh,” she groaned, “and of course you had to tell me. Congratulations, now I am dying with suspense.”

Adrien grinned sheepishly. A crunching outside announced that they had turned into Marinette’s gravel driveway.

“One more thing,” he added, “would it be weird-” he paused “-I don’t want to be impolite-”

“What is it?” Marinette prodded.

“Can I have your number?” Adrien’s eyes immediately dropped to his hands which were wringing the fabric of his shirt between them.

“Of course! Why ever not?” Adrien grinned and handed her his phone. She entered her number and put her name as Little Miss Psychology with a smirk. When she was finished, she clicked done, and glanced at his list of contacts. There were so few, that she didn’t even need to scroll to reach them all. There was his father, his driver, Nino, a stern woman with glasses labelled as “Natalie”, a teenaged Asian girl named “Kagami”, and - now - Marinette. Marinette hid her surprise, handed his phone back and said farewell.

As she watched his car pull out of the driveway, she thought about it.

“Poor Adrien,” she said to Tikki who had left her purse as soon as they were out of sight, “no wonder why he was so excited to gain a new friend. He really only has Nino and that girl, Kagami.”

“Yes, it’s so sad just thinking about it. Imagine how lonely he must feel in that big house all by himself. I’m glad you’re his friend, Marinette.” Tikki lay her small paw on Marinette’s shoulder.

Marinette smiled. “Me too,” she said.

oOo

The end of September came and went, and Marinette was no closer to learning about Adrien’s surprise than she had been. He kept telling her that he was working on it, but the anticipation was killing her.

As soon as she had met Adrien at the café, Marinette had told Alya all about it and had kept her updated ever since. Alya kept hinting that Marinette and Adrien should date, but Marinette shut it down every time. “If you had a brother would you date him?” She said every time Alya mentioned it. Alya always responded with “no, but Nino is my best friend, other than you, and I’m dating him.” At this Marinette huffed and Alya smirked like she’d won.

Once Marinette started looking for Adrien at her school, she saw him everywhere. They always stopped to talk as often as the bells would allow them, but other than their café visits, that was the only time she saw him.  
Here they were, mid-October, and Marinette was starting to consider Adrien as on par with Alya. Marinette felt slightly guilty about it, but she was very close with Adrien.

“Marinette,” Ayla’s elbow in her side brought Marinette’s attention back to the moment, “girl, Miss Bustier just said we have a project coming up, she’s explaining it now.” Alya winked at Marinette, “I thought you might want to hear this, your daydreaming about Adrien can wait.”

Marinette scoffed good naturedly, “as if,” she whispered back.

After Miss Bustier explained the project, she told everyone to work with their seat partner – Nino would be working alone – and they got started. One thing Marinette loved about Alya was that she loved having fun, but if they needed to work, she never was one to keep them from it.

The period passed and before the lunch bell rang, Alya and Marinette had planned out all they had to do and who was going to do what. When the bell announced they were free, the class filed out, and Alya and Marinette met up with Nino. Out of the corner of her eye, Marinette saw a head of blond hair leave the locker room and head for the benches outside. Everyone else headed for the courtyard.

“Hey, Nino,” she said, “where’s Adrien going?”

“Oh, he likes to eat outside, a little odd if you ask me but I don’t question the dude. I’ve never gone because I stick with you two.”

“We should eat with him.” Marinette felt bad that he ate alone and there were some nice benches outside.

“I don’t have a problem with that if you guys are fine with it, I just follow your lead anyways.”

Marinette looked to Alya. “Sure, girl. I’d like to meet this Adrien more officially.”

Marinette smiled, they grabbed their food, and headed outside. Adrien looked surprised to see them but invited them over immediately.

After introductions were made between Adrien and Alya, each had met each other before, but only in passing, they all fell into conversation. They soon got talking about Halloween.

“I know it’s more of an American thing, but I love the idea of going door to door for candy.” Alya was saying. “The parties held all around Paris are supposed to be wonderful, but we are too young to go to them. I say bring Halloween to the kids!” Alya raised her fist in the air and they all laughed at her passion.

“I used to always hate the parties my father hosted for Halloween, he was always busy planning for them, which meant he always forgot my birthday.”

“Wait a second,” Marinette cut him off, “your birthday is coming up, and you didn’t tell me?”

Adrien smiled sheepishly, a look that was now quite familiar to Marinette. “I didn’t think it was important.”

“Of course, it’s important. Any birthday is important, especially a 16th one. What are you doing to celebrate?”

Adrien went quiet. “Nothing.”

“We’ll see about that.” Marinette smiled warmly at Adrien, and he seemed to lighten up. The conversation shifted again, and Halloween was soon forgotten. Alya seemed fascinated by Adrien’s career as a model and about all his photographers. Marinette smirked and pulled out her phone,

we need to do something for him

She sent to the group chat with Nino and Alya.

Alya: sure but what

Marinette: idk yet, will think of something…

A scream shattered Marinette’s thoughts, and all four of the friends raced towards the courtyard.

“An Akuma!” Adrien said when he saw the gigantic looming figure. “We need to find cover now!”

They darted into the school. Marinette looked around for somewhere she could transform. She saw the bathrooms.

“I need to go to the washroom I will be back!” Before anyone could protest, Marinette sprinted into the bathroom. She checked to make sure that it was empty, then transformed. “Tikki, spots on!” A pink light filled the bathroom, and Marinette was covered, from head to toe, in her Ladybug suit.

Ladybug searched the bathroom for a way she could reach the akuma without letting her friends know her identity. Her eyes fell on a small window leading outside. Ladybug pushed it open and began searching for the akuma. She spotted it heading towards the Eiffel Tower. The akuma was shaped like a giant made completely out of churning water. The streets were soaked as he went, and when he touched something, the water in that section of his body beat against it until it was smooth. The akuma seemed to be mimicking the effect that waves had on rocks over hundreds of years, but in a few seconds. The street was left polished in its wake and buildings were left in ruins.

Ladybug followed it towards the Eiffel Tower, scrambling for a plan as she swung. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw her partner travelling next to her. He propelled himself along with his staff and kept in pace with her leap for leap.

“What do you think, m’lady?” Chat landed next to her on the roof top, and they watched the akuma.

“See if you can find an akumatized object.” Ladybug searched everywhere but she could see nothing from her position.

“M’lady, if it were possible, I would say that it doesn’t have one.”

Ladybug shook her head. It was impossible, and yet… the akuma didn’t have an akumatized object. Was it from someone other than Hawkmoth? Could it be? Ladybug shook her head. That was even more impossible.

“Keep looking, I’m going to get a different angle.” She swung to the opposite side of the Eiffel Tower. She still saw nothing.

Through both Chat Noir and Ladybug’s heads, went the same thought.

What if... ?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you have enjoyed my story so far! I love hearing from you, please comment! I am sorry for the unexpected hiatus; everything has been so busy with COVID-19.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter!!
> 
> \- dimsum


End file.
